Lift seat

ABSTRACT

A pool lift comprises an actuator to lower and raise a seat carrying a user into and out of a pool. The seat is mountable to the actuator for either leftward or rightward movement, enabling use in a variety of pool configurations. The seat further folds when not in use to minimize the footprint of the device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to lift seats for pools, and more particularly to an improved pool lift seat.

Accessibility for pools, both swimming and therapeutic pools, is enhanced by employing a lift device, such as a lift seat, to assist with entry to and exit from the pool.

It would be helpful to have a lift seat that was easy to use, and adaptable to different configuration requirements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the disclosure, a system and method provide a pool lift seat that is adapted for both left and right side mounting relative to a support.

Accordingly, the present disclosure provides an improved system and method and pool lift seat for providing accessibility to pools.

The subject matter of the present technology is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of this specification. However, both the organization and method of operation, together with further embodiments thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with accompanying drawings wherein like reference characters refer to like elements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a rear view of a pool seat in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the pool seat in a retracted and in an extended position;

FIG. 3 is a partially disassembled view of the chair and lift assembly;

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the lift mechanism;

FIG. 5 is a view of the seat and lift portion separated;

FIG. 6 is a view of the lift mechanism with the seat removed;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the seat adjustment bolts of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view of the lift mechanism;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view showing seat mounting holes;

FIG. 10 is a top view of the system in a retracted position;

FIG. 11 is a top view of the system in an extended into the pool position;

FIG. 12 is a partially exploded view of the seat with optional arm rests;

FIGS. 13, 14 and 15 are views of the optional wheel kit for ease of movement of the seat and lift;

FIGS. 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21 illustrate steps to move the seat from a right side mounting configuration to a left side mounting configuration;

FIG. 22 is an exploded view of the folding seat portion of the lift seat;

FIGS. 23, 24, 25 and 26 are front perspective, side, back and rear perspective views of the seat in an open position;

FIGS. 27 and 28 are front and rear perspective view of the seat in a partially folded position; and

FIG. 29 is a front perspective view of the seat in a fully folded up position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a lift seat with raising and lowering mechanism to allow a user to be lifted into or out of a pool.

Referring to FIG. 1, a rear view of a pool seat together with FIG. 2, a side view of the pool seat in a retracted and in an extended position, the seat comprises a lift assembly 12 with attached seat 14. The lift assembly supports the seat and is operative to tilt to the side to move the seat to the side and lower the seat into the water 16 of the pool.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an exploded view of the lift assembly and seat, the seat 14 comprises a back 18 supported by two upwardly extending back members 20, the back members interfacing with support members 22 that mount horizontal seat portion 24 thereon. Leg members 26 extend away from the front of the seat at a downward angle and carry foot rest 28 at the ends thereof distal from the seat.

The lift assembly 12 comprises a mounting base member 30 to which a somewhat vertically oriented beam 32 hingedgly mounts by means of hinge 34, allowing rotation of the support beam about axis 35. The upper end of the beam 32 carries a chair mount 36 which is adapted to rotate about axis 38 and to attach to chair 14 by use of chair attachment beam 40. Extensible actuator 42 attaches between an upper end of the support beam and a mounting member 44 positioned at an edge of the base member that is distal from the hinge 34. Extension of the actuator 42 causes the support beam to rotate towards the direction of the pool, carrying the chair with it, moving the chair towards the pool. The rotational movement of the chair mount 36 allows the chair to remain level while the support beam is rotating. A battery pack 46 is mountable to the structure of the device and powers operational controls for raising and lowering of the chair.

Referring now to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, mounting base member 30 carries two upwardly extending mounting tabs 48 which have mounting holes, a lower pair of mounting holes receiving double end threaded stud 50 therethrough, suitably mounted by use of washers and nuts. The stud 50 also passes through corresponding holes in the lower end of actuator arm assembly 52. Support arm 54 mounts at it lower end through a mounting hole to a stud member that fits in the upper hole of the right mounting tab 48.

The lower portion of actuator arm assembly 52 extends horizontally at a slight upward angle, and includes a vertical arm component that extends upwardly about twice to three times the distance of the horizontal extent, carrying a seat mount bushing 56 which rotationally mounts seat mount assembly 58 to the upper portion of the actuator arm by use of control axel assembly 59, comprising an axel with threaded end attached to an axel plate with suitable mounting holes.

Rearwardly extending tabs 60 on the horizontal portion of the actuator arm assembly have 2 mounting holes defined therein which mate with corresponding holes on the bottom of an actuator cage assembly 62, suitably mounting by use of bolts, washers and nuts. A linear actuator 64 mounts at the upper end thereof to the top of actuator cage assembly 62 and at the lower end, to two upwardly extending flanges 66 via use of left and right bolts 68, 70 which mount via nuts and washers to corresponding receivers in the bottom of the actuator. A controller/battery pack 72 for driving the actuator mounts to the side of 62 by use of mounting flange 74.

In operation, with reference to FIG. 5, a rear side partially exploded view, the seat mounts to seat mount assembly 58 via use of bolt 76 that passes through holes 78 in a seat back flange and corresponding holes 80 in the seat mount assembly 58.

Operation of the device involves extension of the actuator 64 which causes the actuator arm 52 to pivot on stud 50, carrying with it the seat, which is maintained in a level position by operation of the axel plate and bushing 56 and their attachment to the seat mount assembly. FIG. 2 illustrates the seat in the upper position at the left, and in the lowered, in the pool position at the right.

Adjustment of the seat so that it is level is accomplished, with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, by loosening bolts 82, 84 and adjusting the seat mount assembly 58 to a desired position, then re-tightening the bolts.

Adjustment of the mounting height of the seat is accomplished, with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, by changing the mounting hole through which the bolt 76 is passed, either bottom hole 86, middle hole 88 or top hole 90, in the illustrated embodiment.

FIGS. 10 and 11 are top views of the system in use, FIG. 10 with the seat in the retracted position, FIG. 11 with the seat extended into the pool.

Exemplary measurements in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 are as follows:

Clear deck space 162 adjacent the seat, 48 inches (measurement 164) by 36 inches (measurement 166)

Distance from mounting hole 168 to pool edge 170, 12.5 to 17 inches

When fully extended, the distance from the outer edge of the mounting base to the most distal edge of the seat 172 is 62 inches

Distance from the rear most mounting tab 48 to the front edge of the foot rest on the seat 174, 50 inches

Distance 176 from the back of the seat assembly to the front edge of the foot rest, 41 inches

In use, the following steps are performed to transfer a user to the water.

-   -   Check battery level of lift operator to ensure charge is         adequate for operation (at least 50% charge recommended).     -   Use the buttons on the hand control or control unit front panel         to raise the seat to the deck loading/unloading position as         shown in FIG. 10.     -   Transfer user onto the seat, ensuring that the user' s weight is         centered on seat. Optional armrests can be rotated up if         necessary.     -   Fasten Seat Belt or optional stability vest     -   Position shoulder straps onto shoulders and attach straps to         clips on bottom panel of the stability vest—pull shoulder straps         tight.     -   Use the hand control or control unit front panel to lower the         seat into the water, illustrated in FIG. 11. The waterproof hand         control can remain connected to seat if user is operating lift.     -   Unfasten Seat Belt or unfasten optional stability vest     -   When finished in the pool, return to the seat, ensuring user' s         weight is centered on seat.     -   Fasten Seat Belt or optional stability vest.     -   Use the buttons on the hand control or control unit front panel         to return the seat to the deck loading/unloading position.     -   Unfasten Seat Belt or optional stability vest.     -   Transfer off of the seat

FIG. 12 illustrates the seat with optional armrests 92 that attach to the back of the seat. The armrests can rotate on arc 94 to raise and lower.

For ease of moving the chair lift into place, for example for removing for storage during off season, a set of wheels may be provided, illustrated with reference to FIGS. 13-15. The wheels are illustrated in a stored position in FIG. 13, while they are illustrated as lowered in FIG. 14. Referring to FIG. 15, the wheel assembly comprises left and right lift arms 96, 98 which rotationally mount wheels 100 at the distal ends thereof, suitably via a nut and bolt assembly. At the innermost ends of the lift arms, mounting holes are provided to allow attachment to the bolts 68 and 70, and pull pins 102 are received in corresponding holes 104 in the lift arms, the engagement of the pins with the holes and the rearwardly extending tabs 60 providing a position locking function to lock the lift arms in either of the raised or lowered positions. Thus, to move the chair lift, the wheels are lowered by pulling the pins 102, lowering the wheels, and then re-inserting the pins into holes 104 to lock the wheels in the extended position. The lift seat apparatus may then be tilted to roll on the wheels and be moved as desired.

A feature of the lift seat in accordance with the disclosure is that the side to which the lift lowers, left or right, can be changed, as shown in FIGS. 16-19

First, as shown in FIG. 16, you remove the two lock nuts at 106 from the top pivot assembly.

Next, you remove the lock nut from the end of the control axle 59 at 108.

Then, you slide the seat arm off of the control axle at 110 and remove the bolts from the support arm and control axle at 112.

Next, carefully rotate the support arm out of the way.

Referring to FIG. 17, at 114 you remove the lock nut that secures the bottom of the support arm to the base assembly.

At 116, you slide the support arm off the stud and set aside, and remove the thrust bushing from the stud at 118.

Referring now to FIG. 18, continuing, you now insert the control axle into the actuator arm from the opposite side of the lift at 120, and slide the Seat Arm back over the axle from the other side. Now, align the holes for the hardware and replace the bolts, with washers back through the components as pictured at 122. Note that the thrust bushing is to be placed between the support arm and control axle. Next, at 124 and 126, use the nuts to secure the bolts installed and secure the control axle using the thrust bushing, washer, and lock nut.

Now with reference to FIG. 19, tighten the bolt passing through the support arm up until snug at 128, then and additional ¼″ turn. The other bolt can be tightened until the seat arm and control axle are secured tightly together.

FIG. 20 shows that you now attach the tension arm onto stud with the thrust bushing placed between the base bracket and support arm at 130. Secure the support arm using the washers, and lock nut.

Finally, with reference to FIG. 21, switch the control box to the opposite side by removing the screw and detaching the control box from the mounting bracket 132. This allows access to the screws holding the mounting bracket to the lift frame. Finally at 134 remove both the screws and replace the mounting bracket to the opposite side of the frame with the screws installed on the opposite side of the frame.

FIG. 22 is an exploded view of the folding seat portion of the lift seat, wherein the seat back and lower portions 178, 180 are mounted to upper seat tubes 182 and lower seat tubes 184 respectively. A pair of seat bracket members 186 is mounted to the rear of each tube 184 by use of nut/bolt combination 188 passing through corresponding holes in the tube. The upper tube portions mount to the brackets via nut/bolt combinations 190, 192. A removable pin 194 passes through corresponding holes in one of the brackets, serving to lock the seat in either the lowered or raised positions by interaction of the pin with the walls of tube 184.

FIG. 23, a front perspective of the seat in the lowered position, illustrates the pin 194 in position, while FIGS. 24 and 25 are side and front views of the lowered position seat. In FIG. 26, a rear perspective views of the seat in the lowered position, the interaction of the pin 194 with the seat tube 184 may be observed, where the pin abuts the bottom of the seat tube, preventing folding of the seat.

FIGS. 27 and 28 are front and rear perspective view of the seat in a partially folded position, where the pin 194 is removed to allow the seat to be folded upwardly.

FIG. 29 is a front perspective view of the seat in a fully folded up position, with the pin 194 returned to a locking position, where the interaction of the pin and a face of the tube 184 blocks the seat from being opened. In this position, the pin and tube touch on a face of the tube on the opposite side of the tube from the contact position in the view of FIG. 26.

Suitable dimensions of an exemplary system are as follows:

Base portion width 140 (FIG. 1), 14 inches

Base portion edge to seat edge 142, 37 inches

Base portion edge to foot rest edge 144, 54 inches

Pool deck to top of lift mechanism 146 (FIG. 2), 42 inches

Pool deck to top of seat 148, 38.75 inches

Height of seat above pool deck 150, depending on installation, 18 inches or 17 inches

Setback of installation from pool edge 152, either 17 inches or 14.75 inches

Clearance of lift mechanism from pool deck edge when fully extended 154, either 1.25 inches or 2.25 inches (depending on setback value 152)

Deck to water distance 156, 0 to 6 inches for setback 152 of 17 inches or 7 inches for setback 152 of 14.75 inches

Seat bottom to top of water when seat is fully extended 158, 18 inches

Distance from seat edge to pool edge 160, 14 to 18 inches.

Accordingly, an improved lift seat is provided that is effective to lift users into and out of pools. The lift conforms to ADA clearance requirements for pool lifts, and can be mounted for left or right side operation, making it adaptable to different pool requirements.

While plural embodiments of the technology have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications may be made without departing from the broader aspects. The appended claims are therefore intended to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the technology. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A lift seat for lowering a person into and raising the person out of a pool, comprising: a seat adapted for carrying the person; and a mounting arrangement for enabling mounting of the seat for a left hand side or a right hand side raising/lowering operation.
 2. The lift seat according to claim 1, wherein said seat further comprises a foldable sitting portion for enabling folding of the seat to reduce an amount of pool deck space taken up by the lift seat when not in use.
 3. The lift seat according to claim 1, further comprising: a seat carrying beam member hingedly mounted to a position at the pool deck for rotation about an axis parallel to the pool deck; and an extensible member attached to the beam member, for rotating said beam member about said axis by extension/retraction of the extensible member.
 4. The lift seat according to claim 3, wherein said mounting arrangement comprises a seat attachment member attached to the seat, rotationally attached to an upper portion of the seat carrying beam member.
 5. The lift seat according to claim 4, further comprising a control member operationally engaged with said extensible member for controlling raising and lowering of the seat by retraction and extension of said extensible member.
 6. A lift seat for lowering a person into and raising the person out of a pool, comprising: a frame member carrying operational elements of the lift seat; and a pair of retractable wheels for enabling wheeled movement of the lift seat for movement between an installation site and another location.
 7. The lift seat according to claim 6, wherein said retractable wheels comprise: a pair of lift arms rotationally attached to said frame member for movement between retracted and extended positions; and a pair of wheels, ones of said wheels rotationally mounted to a respective lift arm.
 8. The lift seat according to claim 7, further comprising at least one mounting pin for locking said lift arms to a retracted position.
 9. The lift seat according to claim 8, wherein said mounting pin is further operative for locking said lift arms to an extended position.
 10. The lift seat according to claim 7, further comprising at least one mounting pin for locking said lift arms to an extended position.
 11. A method of providing a lift seat for lowering a person into and raising the person out of a pool, comprising: Providing a seat adapted for carrying the person; and providing a mounting arrangement for enabling mounting of the seat for a left hand side or a right hand side raising/lowering operation.
 12. The method seat according to claim 11, further comprises providing a foldable sitting portion to said seat for enabling folding of the seat to reduce an amount of pool deck space taken up by the lift seat when not in use.
 13. The method according to claim 11, further comprising: providing a seat carrying beam member hingedly mounted to a position at the pool deck for rotation about an axis parallel to the pool deck; and providing an extensible member attached to the beam member, for rotating said beam member about said axis by extension/retraction of the extensible member.
 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein said providing a mounting arrangement comprises providing a seat attachment member attached to the seat, rotationally attached to an upper portion of the seat carrying beam member.
 15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising providing a control member operationally engaged with said extensible member for controlling raising and lowering of the seat by retraction and extension of the extensible member. 